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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29264664">The Worst Morning After</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/MiddleofNowhere92/pseuds/MiddleofNowhere92'>MiddleofNowhere92</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Avatar: The Last Airbender</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M, Modern Era, Morning After</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-07</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-02-08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 13:28:50</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>3,604</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29264664</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/MiddleofNowhere92/pseuds/MiddleofNowhere92</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Ty Lee and Zuko wake up together. It goes downhill from there.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Ty Lee &amp; Zuko (Avatar), Ty Lee/Zuko (Avatar)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>38</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>Rarepair Fics of AtLA</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>It might seem implied that they had sex, but we'll find out if anything happened in chapter 2.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Ty Lee blinked awake as the sun starting to filter in through the blinds. Well, she tried to blink awake. Her mascara had effectively glued her eye shut. She sniffed the air. This didn't smell like her Bath and Body Works air freshener. This place smelled like mahogany, maybe? She rubbed at her eyes and was finally able to get them open. She glanced around. Yeah, she definitely hadn't made it home last night. The bedroom was sparse. A few traditional Fire Nation art works hung on the walls. At least this guy had a clean room, or was it a girl? Geez, she must have had a few last night. Well, either way, it didn’t really matter. It was time to go. She scanned the bedroom one more time. Her dress was on the floor by the door, but where in the Spirits were her shoes... </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The person shifted next to her in bed. Shit! She had missed her window to escape. Ty Lee was pretty good with people, but sometimes she just wanted to hit and run. She wasn’t in the mood to tell her life story. She should just leave now before they fully woke up. The only problem was her dress was all the way over there… She chewed at her lip trying to figure a way out of this. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Suddenly, the other person got up and out of bed. She screwed her eyes shut to feign sleep. She heard their footsteps walk away, followed by a door shutting and the shower turning on. Perfect! This is the opportunity she needed. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She bounced up and out of bed, the cool air making her very awake. She scurried over to her dress. She picked up the pink glittery number and started to wiggle in. She forgot how tight this stupid thing was. She bounced up and down, the floor boards creaking, as she pulled the dress over her thighs. The fabric finally bent to her will and she was able to pull it all the way up. She bit her lip as she twisted her arm in an inhumane way to pull the zipper up. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She pulled and pulled, but the zipper wouldn’t budge. She sucked in as much as she could and it finally pulled up. She spun around looking for her pink glittery heels. They had to be in here somewhere. She glanced to the other person’s side of the bed, but nope. There was just a pair of black jeans crumpled on the floor. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Okay, it was time for her to go further into this person’s living place in her quest. She pressed her ear to the door for any sign of roommates. She heard nothing, so she took a deep breath and opened the door as slowly and quietly as she could. She poked her head out, looking each way before opening the door fully. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She tip toed out into the apartment, scanning for the pink glittery shoes. They were six inch heels for Spirits’ sake. They shouldn’t be that hard to find, especially in this neutral decor situation. This apartment was actually really nice and modern. A little too blah for her taste, but definitely nice. She slunk through the kitchen and hurriedly crossed to the living room, when she spotted them next to the couch. She grinned gleefully as she hopped on one foot as she shoved the other in her heel. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Once both heels were on, she decided this was the perfect opportunity for escape. She stepped on the balls of her feet to avoid her heels hitting the floor. She made a plan to call an Uber as soon as she got in the hallway, except… She huffed her bangs out of her face. Where in the spirits was her phone?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Okay, she just had to be quick. Get it and get out. She hurriedly teetered in her heels across the apartment looking for her phone case covered in pink rhinestones. It had to be around here somewhere. She crammed her small hands in the couch, not feeling anything. She groaned, but scampered through the kitchen, looking over the counter top. She was about to head back to the bedroom, when she turned back to the kitchen, grabbed a bag of fireflakes and then continued with her mission. She could never pass on fireflakes. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She stepped in the bedroom and narrowed her eyes in search of her phone. She shook out the comforter, but no luck. She picked up the pillows, but couldn’t find anything. She looked on the desk, side of the bed, but came up empty. Finally she decided to look under the bed. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She wiggled under the bed. At least it was clean under here too. She saw the glimmer of her bedazzled phone even in the darkness under the bed. She reached her arm out and she hit her phone, sending it sliding across the hardwood floor. She wiggled further under the bed stretching her arm out, if she just had longer fingers. She made grabby hands, but the phone stayed just out of her reach. She was so focused on getting her phone, she was startled when someone cleared their throat and in a raspy voice asked, “Uh, do you need help?” She let out a light scream at the fright, her head bouncing up and hitting the bed frame. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oww!” She groaned. This person had the audacity to snort at her predicament. She glowered, “Are you laughing at me?” They answered breathily, “No…” as they failed to keep their laughter out of their voice. She glared up at them through the mattress. They offered, “Uh, do you need me to pull you out?” She rolled her eyes, “Absolutely not! I can-” As she shimmied out from her under the bed, her extremely tight dress chose that exact moment to rip from the bottom to the middle of her back. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>As she heard the loud tear of the fabric, she realized what happened and wanted to burst into tears. This by far was the worst, most awkward, humiliating morning after she had ever endured. She let her head thunk against the hardwood floor,  wishing it would swallow her up. It’s not like she had any dignity left anyway. She sniffled and Raspy Voice interjected, “Oh, um don’t cry. It’s okay. We’ll get you out.” Couldn’t they just be quiet? She didn’t need to be reminded that there was a witness to the least graceful moment of her life. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She shoved herself out of the bed. When she got out she huffed and sat on the floor, her back against the bed. She glanced around, but the other person wasn’t there. They stepped back into the room and Ty Lee tried her best not to stare. He gave her a small smile and handed her a red towel, “Uh, here you can, uh, shower if you want.” He went to the dresser, “You can wear some of my stuff, it might be a little big, but, um-” “It’ll be better than this right?” She asked as she wrapped the towel around her waist to cover the giant rip in her dress. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He gave her the same tight lipped smile, “Uh, yeah.” He gestured to the door off his bedroom, “Bathroom’s over there.” She thanked him and then slunk into the bathroom to escape the awkwardness. Well, he by far was the prettiest person she had ever gone home with. Sure he had a large scar over the left side of his face, but he was really really good looking. In the brief glimpse that she had gotten, she had noticed how tall and built he was. His wet black hair had been thrown up in a top knot,  a few pieces hanging down in his face. He had just been wearing sweats and a v-neck, but you could still see the muscular build underneath and the tattoos that crawled down his arms. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She cleared her head of the thoughts and cranked the shower on, turning the water as hot as possible. She looked in the steamy mirror to see her gray eyes surrounded in smudged glitter and eyeshadow, giving her the appearance of a raccoon in drag. Her braid was frizzy and her baby hairs were a mess. She looked like shit. Guess she wouldn’t be seeing this guy again. She dropped the towel, then her dress and undid her braid. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She stepped in the hot water, letting it scald her. She closed her eyes, feeling the hot water wash away her sins from the night before. She leaned her head back letting her thick hair become absorbed and heavy with water. She turned, scrubbing the mess of makeup off her face. She stayed in the shower until the hot water ran out, attempting to avoid the inevitable. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She reluctantly stepped out of the shower, wrapping the towel around herself. She put some tooth paste on her finger and got rid of the taste of last night. She poked her head out and found the bedroom empty, but a black pair of boxer briefs, a worn Blink 182 t-shirt, a black Thrasher hoodie and a pair of black sweats were laid out on the bed. At least he was kind of nice, she thought to herself. She dried herself and hung the towel up. She heard voices on the other side of the door, one being the hot guy from earlier and the other sounded like a woman on speaker phone. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>The girl asked, “So how’d it go last night Sparky? Finally get some?” The guy snorted, “Can we not talk about this?” His friend brushed it off, “Give me something juicy! It’s literally the only reason I called you.”  The guy sounded like he was shuffling around in the kitchen as he responded, “I thought you were gonna let me know whose place we were doing your Anti-Valentine's day at later.” The other person answered, “Well duh, your place obviously.” Raspy Voice answered, “Spirits no! There’s pink glitter all over the place.” The other voice answered, “Glitter! What in the Spirits did you take home with you last night?” The guy awkwardly cleared his throat and said, “The line’s breaking up! I can’t hear you. Gotta go. Bye!” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Ty Lee bit her lip to keep her laugh in. He seemed like a nice enough guy. His words reminded her that right, today was Valentine's Day. The sun had barely risen, but this day was even worse than the Valentine's day that Haru had broken up with her. Last night, she had gone out for a fun night with Aang and Suki to forget that they were single, but it had somehow spiraled into the disaster of a situation she was currently in. She shook her head and put on his borrowed clothes. She finger combed her thick, impossibly long hair, but she didn’t have the energy to attempt to braid it right this minute. She braced herself and opened his bedroom door.  His back was turned to her as he opened and closed kitchen cabinets. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Even though she hadn’t made any noise, he seemed to sense her. He called over his shoulder, “I got your phone out from under the bed. It’s on the charger.” He pointed to it with an empty cereal box, that he then tossed in the recycling. She bounced over and saw the many, many missed calls and text messages from Suki and Aang. She groaned thinking about all the questions she would have to deal with the next time she saw them. And she spotted her bag of fireflakes from earlier, perched right next to her phone. She snuck the little bag into the hoodie pocket.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The guy looked over at her and asked, “Wanna come get breakfast with me?” She looked at him wide eyed like a deer startled by a hunter, “Oh, I don’t want to intrude.” She couldn’t possibly go out in public </span>
  <em>
    <span>like this</span>
  </em>
  <span>. She was already horrified that he had seen her without make up, looking like a half dead zombie. She couldn’t have anyone else witness how utterly disgusting she looked. He just shrugged, “I was gonna go anyway, since I have nothing to eat here.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Oh. So he didn’t really want her to come. That was fine. She couldn't blame him. She tried to answer in a nonchalant tone, “I ordered my Uber. I should really head home.” He turned to finally look at her. She had never felt so self conscious, his golden eyes seemed to be able to see every flaw in her appearance, as he took in her disheveled form. She became weirdly embarrassed as he glanced down at her pink glitter painted toes. He walked away and answered, “My half sister left some crocs here. They’ll probably fit you.” He came back holding a pair of white crocs that did actually look like they would fit. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>She slipped into them and his oversized long sweatpants cascaded over them. She looked up at him sheepishly, feeling a pink blush tint her cheeks, “I guess I’m as ready as I’ll ever be.” She unplugged her phone and scooped up her heels while he grabbed a burgundy hoodie. She followed him out of the apartment and down the stairs. The cold February air gave Ty Lee a chill. She tucked her long damp hair into the hood and pulled it up.  He glanced at her, “Oh, fuck. Sorry. I should have given you a hat or something.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>The two stood there in awkward silence. Ty Lee turned staring off into the distance praying this Uber would get here soon. Couldn’t this guy just walk wherever he was going and leave her to sulk in her walk/ride of shame?</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Thankfully, the Spirits took pity on her and her ride pulled up. She gave Hot Guy a small nod, not wanting to really acknowledge him and her embarrassment,  and then got in. As the driver pulled away, he began chattering about his cabbage farming business. Ty Lee stared out the window, trying to forget this terrible morning. She opened the bag of fireflakes for comfort as they got further and further away from the scene of her horrifying morning. </span>
</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>So this fic came out of the ATLA rarepair one shot requests I take on tumblr. This month's prompt was valentine's day. If you haven't gotten enough of my idiocy come be my fren on <a href="https://middleofnowhere92.tumblr.com">tumblr</a></p>
        </blockquote></div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>
  <span>Toph had said this would be a small get together, only a few people. After all these years, he should have known that was a lie. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Toph had said this was an anti-valentine’s day party, for single people to not feel pressured into relationships. He disliked Valentine’s day. It was an asinine holiday. The hearts, the pink, the glitter- gross. It was over commercialized and an excuse to make half the population feel like they were unloved.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He didn’t know half the people here. As he squeezed past groups of people. He spotted a girl perched on an armchair. She looked different, but she clutched a pink bedazzled phone in her hand that had been under his bed a few hours prior. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Shit. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He evacuated the immediate area, weaving in between people to get to the kitchen. He wordlessly herded Sokka out onto the balcony. He closed the glass doors and looked at his friend. “Dude. I have a situation that normally happens to you, but it’s happening to me and I don’t know what to do.” Sokka put his hand on Zuko’s shoulder, “Zuko, buddy. You’re in the middle of a fuck up. Tell me all about it.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Zuko ran his hands down his face, “I brought a girl home last night and now she’s here in the living room.” Sokka looked at him in confusion, “Did it not go well? Is she annoying or something?” Zuko still looked panicked, “No, no. She’s fine. This morning was just so fucking awkward.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sokka shrugged, “I know you don’t hook up a lot dude, but it’s always kind of awkward and well, with you I’m not surprised.” Zuko glared at his friend, but dismissed the jab, “Look, we didn’t even hook up. We both just slept at my place.” “Huh,” Sokka eloquently responded.</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Zuko sulked, “I thought you’d be more helpful.” “I thought you’d have a real problem.” Zuko glared at him even harder. Sokka threw his arm around his friend’s shoulder, “Bro, just follow her lead. If she acknowledges you, go with it and if she ignores you, go with it.” That actually wasn’t terrible advice. Zuko nodded. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Sokka raised his eyebrow, “We could make this interesting though..” Toph popped on the balcony, “Make what interesting?” Zuko groaned. Toph always had the worst timing. Sokka conspired, “Zuko’s lady friend from last night is here. Toph, I bet you I can find her first.” Toph shook his hand, “It’s on like Donkey Kong!”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>Zuko grabbed both of them, “If either of you says anything to her or make her feel uncomfortable-” Toph brushed him off, “We got this Sparky.” The two of them shoved through the patio doors. Sokka immediately called across the apartment, “June! I need your help with something.” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>Zuko face palmed. He really needed new friends. His were awful. The only thing that comforted Zuko was that his friends probably wouldn’t identify her, because she wasn’t his usual type. </span>
</p><p>
  <span> He sighed and then looked up to see </span>
  <em>
    <span>her </span>
  </em>
  <span>standing in the patio doorway. This morning when he had glanced at her in his bed, the sun coming in through the blinds gave her an ethereal look. Now that the sun was setting- the oranges, pinks and purples all reflected in a way that still made her look more like a Spirit, about to lure him into the next realm. She was clasping her hands uncertainly, “Uh hi. Got a sec?” </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He pulled himself from his thoughts, “Uh yeah. What’s up?” She closed the patio doors. She leaned against the balcony and poked her Ugg into the ground, “I’m so sorry for this morning. I’m usually not like that. I know people say that all the time, but I swear I’m really not.” He cut off her long winded apology, “You’re definitely not. You told me so at least twenty times last night.” “Oh Spirits,” she groaned, “Do I even want to know what happened?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>He looked out at the city, “We left the bar, got about a hundred chicken nuggets and fifty crab rangoons. We had a sword fight with day old bread from Jimmy John’s and then we crashed at my place.” She looked at him confused, “Then why was I naked?” Zuko chuckled, “You said your dress was so tight it was strangling you. I tried to sleep on the floor and on the couch, but you would just start singing Taylor Swift until I laid down with you.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She couldn’t help but laugh, “Spirits, I just keep getting more embarrassed.” He looked at her and sure enough her cheeks were pink enough to match the sunset sky. He bumped his elbow into her's on the railing, “Don’t worry about it. I was pretty lit too, I ate the crab rangoons by myself and then you started crying, because there weren’t any left.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She held her hand over her mouth to conceal her smile, “I am never drinking again. I’m a total troll.” She looked at him bashfully, “I don’t mean to bother you or waste any more of your day. I just really wanted to apologize. My friends couldn’t believe me when I told them.” He chuckled, “My two friends have a bet running that they can identify you, so if anyone asks if you know me, can you just tell them you don’t?”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She started walking back towards the apartment, “Sure thing boss.” She gave him a mock salute. Then she stopped with her hand on the door knob, “What do I get if I help you out?” M</span>
  <em>
    <span>y friends won’t traumatize you</span>
  </em>
  <span>, he thought, but he answered, “Hey you still have my clothes, so I think technically you owe me.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>“Oh,” she put her hand over her mouth, embarrassed that she had completely forgotten about his clothes. He emphasized, “I was kidding. I don’t fit into my high school stuff anymore.” He then added on as an afterthought, “But maybe I could get your number to get my sister’s shoes back and uh, to maybe take you to breakfast sometime, if you want.”</span>
</p><p>
  <span>She looked up at him, her gray eyes wide in surprise. Her answer was cut off by Sokka flinging open the balcony door. “Oh for fuck’s sake,” Zuko groaned. His friends really did have the worst timing. Sokka was trying to get more intel from him, “So tell me about this Valentine’s day mystery girl.” “Go fuck yourself,” Zuko snarled. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>As Sokka tried to pry information out of him, the girl flounced back into the apartment and came back to the patio, handing Zuko a bag of fire flakes. Sokka ignored her, too lost in trying to figure out who she was. He could be such a dumbass sometimes. Zuko thought it was weird, but as he glanced down, he saw her number on the napkin she had given him in addition to the fire flakes. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He looked up as she gave a small wave behind Sokka and then turned to disappear into the crowded apartment. He looked down at the napkin one more time and smiled to himself. Her neat handwriting had artfully written her number and her name, Ty Lee. It seemed somewhat familiar, but Lee was a pretty common name. </span>
</p><p>
  <span>He brushed it off as he sent her a quick text- </span>
  <em>
    <span>Hello, Zuko here. </span>
  </em>
</p><p>
  <span> He guessed Valentine’s day wasn’t that shitty after all.  </span>
</p>
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